REKNOWN

RENOWN

When you won the national spelling bee you achieved great renown (fame). Now you are a renowned speller (notice the -ed ending on the adjectival form).

Many people mistakenly suppose that because “renown” has to do with being well known the word should be spelled “reknown,” but in fact it is derived from the French word nom and has to do with gaining a name. In French, fame is renomée.